Books : How the States Got Their Shapes
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 917.3
EAN: 9780061431388
ISBN: 0061431389
Label: Collins
Manufacturer: Collins
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 352
Publication Date: June 01, 2008
Publisher: Collins
Release Date: May 27, 2008
Sales Rank: 2531
Studio: Collins
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Editorial Review:
Product Description:
Why does Oklahoma have that panhandle? Did someone make a mistake?
We are so familiar with the map of the United States that our state borders seem as much a part of nature as mountains and rivers. Even the oddities—the entire state of Maryland(!)—have become so engrained that our map might as well be a giant jigsaw puzzle designed by Divine Providence. But that's where the real mystery begins. Every edge of the familiar wooden jigsaw pieces of our childhood represents a revealing moment of history and of, well, humans drawing lines in the sand.
How the States Got Their Shapes is the first book to tackle why our state lines are where they are. Here are the stories behind the stories, right down to the tiny northward jog at the eastern end of Tennessee and the teeny-tiny (and little known) parts of Delaware that are not attached to Delaware but to New Jersey.
How the States Got Their Shapes examines:
- Why West Virginia has a finger creeping up the side of Pennsylvania
- Why Michigan has an upper peninsula that isn't attached to Michigan
- Why some Hawaiian islands are not Hawaii
- Why Texas and California are so outsized, especially when so many Midwestern states are nearly identical in size
Packed with fun oddities and trivia, this entertaining guide also reveals the major fault lines of American history, from ideological intrigues and religious intolerance to major territorial acquisitions. Adding the fresh lens of local geographic disputes, military skirmishes, and land grabs, Mark Stein shows how the seemingly haphazard puzzle pieces of our nation fit together perfectly.
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
This book offers many interesting tidbits for the geography buff. There are indeed interesting stories behind the borders of many of the American states, like some forgotten bloodshed over the deceptively straightforward borders of Kansas, or how Maryland's piecemeal geography is the result of losing every border dispute it ever got into. We learn that the older states have crooked borders due to colonial shenanigans and faulty surveying, and that many of the newer states have purposefully similar ... Read More
Rating: -
I thought the topic and the content was great. Very interesting, along with good maps and detail. However, the setup was poor. Instead of going in alphabetical order, it should have gone by time sequence. Alphabetically caused the book to jump around and lose focus causing it to get boring.
Rating: -
I love this sort of thing, and so I found Mark Stein's stroll through the history of the borders of the American states pretty interesting. I can imagine not everyone feels that way, and so might find this book boring or even inexplicable. But even if the only chapter you read is the one on your own state, I'm willing to bet most readers will come away from "How the States Got Their Shapes" having uncovered a few interesting facts.
There are a few different ways Mark Stein could have approached ... Read More
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Stein explains the border origins for each of the fifty United States of America. The book contains 179 maps that each overlay current and previous state borders and supplement the main text. Each chapter explores one state and opens with a few questions about that particular state border's eccentricities. The highlight is the ten-page introductory chapter that explains several multi-state borders resulting from territorial acquisition or Congressional edict. This section is labeled "Don't Skip This!" and ... Read More
Rating: -
Why is the Upper Penisula part of Michigan? Why does Missouri have that little notch in its southeast that extends into Arkansas? How about that little notch in southwest Connecticut? What's the deal with that long, skinny panhandle at the top of West Virginia? How come Staten Island isn't part of New Jersey? How did Maryland get so skinny?
Whatever your question, and whatever your state, this book is sure to fill you in. Whether politics, geography, war, or simply human error, there seems to ... Read More
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